Chapter 21: Strength Emerges
"What do you think?"
Walking through the bustling streets of Night City, Tanaka's voice was soft but clear.
"What do I think?" Ash smirked. "Of course I'm going after that thing."
It was an Immortal-grade relic—one-of-a-kind in all of Night City. He had no clue what it actually did, but the rarity alone made it worth chasing.
Until recently, he'd still been wondering how to even begin tracking down an Immortal-grade item. Then, like a quest marker lighting up on a HUD, an opportunity dropped into his lap. Some main-character level NPC starting a questline?
"Won't this pull us into top-tier conflict zones? That doesn't really match your usual 'stay out of trouble' vibe," Tanaka asked, curiosity dancing in her eyes.
"Tanaka," Ash said evenly, "in Night City, we don't always get to choose. The world moves, and we either move with it—or get crushed."
He glanced toward the alley where Masaru Sasaki was harassing a homeless man.
"The storm over Night City is gathering. We don't have the means to leave. So, we either ride the wind—or get blown away."
"We're Arasaka personnel. We don't get to stay neutral. Might as well squeeze some profit out of it."
Ash ruffled Tanaka's hair. "Being chill is part of life. But it's not all of it."
"Hey! What are you doing here?" Masaru Sasaki barked, staggering toward them. His eyes lit up at the sight of Tanaka. Without thinking, he reached to grab her.
Last time, she'd been jacked into a netrunning pod. He hadn't seen her face. Now? The woman standing before him was a vision—elegant, dangerous, devastating.
Even a starved version of Tanaka could've been sold off to a corpo brothel like the Red House. But this? This version of her was lethal beauty incarnate.
But Sasaki didn't know: Tanaka only allowed one man to touch her—and it wasn't him.
Ssszzz...
A sharp crackle filled the air. The scent of scorched metal followed. Sasaki's cybernetic eye sparked, went dim, and black smoke hissed from his skull. His legs gave way. He crumpled.
Thud.
His upper body hit the pavement with a dead weight. He didn't move.
"Sasaki! Captain Sasaki!"
His teammates panicked and swarmed. Wilson, still inside the bar, dropped everything and ran out.
He saw the collapsed Sasaki. Saw Ash. Saw the woman.
"Captain, Sasaki's... gone," the medic muttered grimly.
"Ash!" Wilson growled. He didn't need proof. He knew who did it.
"Ash, don't you have anything to say?"
Ash blinked, calm as ever. "Wilson! Good to see you. Where've you been getting rich lately?"
Wilson's fists trembled with fury. He activated his cybernetics, then lunged forward, throwing a brutal haymaker at Ash.
The blow was massive—strong enough to smash through a car's engine block. Wind howled with it. Lightbulbs exploded. Windows shattered. Civilians screamed.
The punch landed.
The earth split where Ash stood. A cloud of dust blasted outward.
"Nice one, Captain!"
"That'll teach him!"
Wilson's crew erupted in cheers.
But then the dust settled.
Ash still stood. No blood. No bruises. No scratches.
He tilted his head slightly. "The guy's dead. Your pride's intact. We're leaving. Try again—and I can't promise you'll live."
Wilson froze. He couldn't breathe.
"Don't worry," Ash added with a slight grin, "Only you could hear that."
He turned. Tanaka followed silently.
Everyone watching was struck by the same thought: Is he even human?
"Heh, scared them off," Tanaka teased.
"If I let every two-bit punk challenge me, wouldn't that mean I've got no backbone?" Ash said coolly. "Sometimes, showing strength saves you from future annoyances."
"What now?"
"Finish the mission."
"The woman?"
"No. That's the infamous V."
---
Time flew. Ash finalized bomb schematics—blast radius, safe zones, detonation triggers. Then Valf Reyes called.
"We've located Sovoil's crew. Coordinates incoming."
"They're rushing this," Nova Li said, grinning around a lollipop. "Guess we'll score big."
"Shouldn't we loop in Dakota? We'll still need her for tracking leads," Takumi Kai asked while calibrating drones.
"Why bother? If they're planning to eat us alive, they'd better be ready to get eaten. It's the jungle, little bro." Nova Li laughed, sitting beside him, crossing her legs. "Bleeding hearts are endangered these days."
"I knooow," Takumi groaned.
Tanaka floored the pedal from the driver's seat. Her silence? Pure impatience.
---
"Valf Reyes? Where are you?!" Dakota Smith entered the empty tent, frowning.
Something felt... wrong.
Her sharp eyes landed on a subtle pressure switch in the floor. Her gut twisted.
Too many in Night City forget to think. Fists solve things—until they don't. But Dakota? Dakota rose through strategy, through respect. That's what made her a fixer.
She picked up the switch. The internal build... too perfect.
Her face twisted in fury. That woman!
Nova Li had always seemed too innocent. But Dakota never truly trusted her. Now it clicked—Valf Reyes must've tried to rob them. And they responded.
Fast.
Dakota dialed Nova.
She answered instantly, cheerful as ever. Lollipop in place, sparkling eyes.
"Yo~ Dakota. What's up? Any luck with Sovoil's guys?"
"Is Valf Reyes alive?"
"Hmm... Not dead. Yet."
"You attacked them?!"
"What was I supposed to do—wait to get jumped?"
"Casualties?!"
"Didn't I say? Valf Reyes isn't dead."
Dakota's voice cracked. "You mean... the others..."
Nova's sweet voice turned ice-cold. "They're all dead."
The screen flickered. Bodies. Burning vehicles. Charred limbs. Black smoke. It looked like hell.
Dakota's heart stopped.
"Did you have to go that far? Are you trying to start a war?!"
Nova's face dropped the act. "Oh please. We came to talk. They came to betray. And now I'm the bad guy?"
She quoted Ash's creed:
If someone slanders me, tricks me, insults me, laughs at me... what should I do? Curse him. Beat him. Hack him. Kill him.
Nova never forgot her lessons.
She turned the cam. Valf Reyes lay broken. Tanaka's boot crushed his arm into pulp. He twitched, barely conscious.
"Every ten minutes, another limb goes, Ms. Dakota. Clock's ticking. Get me Sovoil's contact—or he's mulch."
Click. Call ended.
Dakota exploded. Tables flew. She screamed.
Then she calmed.
She had to save Valf Reyes.
Even if he was reckless. Even if he'd brought this on himself. The crew would fall apart otherwise.
Damn it. Damn it all.